Australian all-rounder Glenn Maxwell suggested Indian pacer Jasprit Bumrah could end up as the greatest fast bowler of all time.
Speaking in ‘The Grade Cricketer podcast’, Maxwell said, “Bumrah is going to go down as potentially the best fast bowler of all time. Maybe not with the amount of wickets he takes in every format but for the guys that have played against him, it is just so difficult. So difficult. He’s just got such a unique action, unique ability with the ball. He seems like a complete package.”
Maxwell’s comment comes on the back of Bumrah delivering a match-winning eight-wicket haul in the first Border-Gavaskar Test in Perth.
Filling in for Rohit Sharma as the skipper, Bumrah took a fifer in the first innings as India strangled Australia to just 104. He followed it up with three more scalps in the fourth innings to help his side to a massive 295-run win.
Maxwell also offered an insight into the complexity of tackling Bumrah as a batter. “It almost feels like his bouncer and his length ball are very similar in terms of his release point. And it’s really hard to pick up the difference between those. The ball always feels like it’s coming back into you. And he’s got the ability to take the ball away, which just makes it extremely difficult.”
Bumrah’s Perth performance was just a continuation of his stirring form in 2024. Earlier in the year, he was adjudged the player of the series of the T20 World Cup, after picking up 15 wickets in India’s title-win run.
The 30-year-old has been irrepressible in Tests too, with the pacer taking more wickets than anyone else in the longest format in 2024.